Gauge for bending brakes



April 14, 1953 R. P. LINDER 2,634,737

GAUGE FoR BENDING BRAKES Filed June 22, 195o 2 sREETs-sx-IEET 1 ,QB F G. 1

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GAUGE: FoR BENDING BRAKES Filed .June 22, 195o 2 Simms-Smm 2 ROGER NDER ATT-O'RNEYS Patented Apr. 14,1953

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Roger P. Linder, Lake City, Minn., assigner to Albert T. ONeil, Lake City, Minn.

Application .lune 22, 1950, Serial No. 169,646

4 Claims. l

The herein disclosed invention relates to bend ing brakes and particularly to a gage for use with such brake and by means of which the work may be properly positioned between the clamping surfaces of the clamp members of the brake.

An object of the invention resides in providing a gage adapted to be disposed between the clamping surfaces of the clamp members of the brake and adapted to contact both of said surfaces at all settings of the clamp members and to extend completely across the space therebetween to positively locate the work with reference thereto and to prevent the work slipping past the gage.

Another object of the invention resides in constructing the gage from resilient sheet material and in forming the same with parts adapted to yieldingly engage the clamping surfaces of the clamping members and to extend completely across the space therebetween, said gage having edges engageable by an edge of the work and serving to position the work with reference to the clamp.

A still further object of the invention resides in constructing the gage with a number of slots extending through an edge thereof and inwardly therefrom to provide spaced fingers and in forming said iingers with twists causing the ends of the fingers to normally extend obliquely with reference to the plane of the sheet, said iingers being bendable into the plane of the sheet and being disposed between the clamping members of the brake and yieldingly extending at all times from one clamping surface to the other.

Another object of the invention resides in providing a supporting and adjusting device for the gage by means of which the gage may be quickly and accurately adjusted.

Other objects of the invention reside in the novel combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter illustrated and/ or described.

The structure disclosed in the drawings consists of a finger brake having a bed on which the sheet to be bent is placed. Overlying this bed is a support for a number of fingers which when arranged `in juxtaposed position provide a bending edge over which the work mas7 be bent. The support for the fingers is movable toward the bed and the fingers and bed form clamping members adapted to clamp the work in position. The invention proper consists of a gage constructed from sheet material of a resilient character and is formed with a number oi transverse slots extending inwardly from one edge of the sheet and toward the other edge thereof. These slots provide in the sheet a longitudinally extending body portion from which a number of spaced ngers issue. These fingers have forward edges which lie substantially in continuation of one another and said fingers are formed with twists at their inner ends causing said edges of the iingers to extend obliquely with reference to the body portion of the gage. The forward ends of the fingers are adapted to extend between the clamp members and the bends in the iingers cause the longitudinal edges of the lingers to alternately engage the clamping surfaces of the clamping members and to close the space therebetween regardless of the position of said clamping members. When the upper clamp member is moved toward the bed the fingers are straightened out and lie substantially in the plane of the body portion. For operating the gage two rods are employed which are attached to the frame of the brake and which extend rearwardly therefrom. These rods have attached to them posts to which is pivoted a shaft extending cross-wise of said rods and below the same. A slide is slidably mounted on said rods and has attached to it the gage. Secured to the shaft are arms and which have pivoted to them links which also are pivoted to the slide. Rotary movement of the shaft procured by a handle secured thereto causes the slide to move along the rods and to move the work engaging edges of the gage toward and from the bending edge of the brake fingers.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a plan view of a brake with parts broken away and illustrating an embodiment of the invention applied thereto.

Fig. 2 is an elevational sectional view taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an elevational cross sectional view taken on line 3--3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a cross sectional view taken on line 4 4 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is an elevational sectional view taken on line 5 5 of Fig. 3.

For the purpose of illustrating the invention a brake has been shown in the drawings which is designated by the reference character IU. This brake comprises a base I I formed with standards i 2 at the ends of the same. These standards have 'attached to them stub shafts I3 which are disposed in alignment and which pivotally support for swinging movement relative to the base II a bender lli. The base I I has two supporting blocks I5 formed thereon and which carry ya bed I6. The bed I B is attached to the blocks I 5 by means of screws I'I which extend through said bed and which are countersunk into the upper surface I9 0f said bed and which are screwed into the blocks 3 I5. Mounted on the bed I6 is a clamping device I 8 which holds in position on the bed I6 the work to be bent.

The bender I 4 comprises two arms 2l and 22 which are substantially identical in construction and which are formed with bearings 27 through which the stub shafts I3 extend. Due to the similarity of these arms, only the arm 2| which is best shown in Fig. 3 will be described in detail. The arm 2| has an offset portion 23 projecting outwardly therefrom. To this offset portion of each of the arms is attached a forming bar 24". Cap screws 25 extend through said bar and are screwed into the offset portion 23 to securely attach the bar to the same. By means of this construction the two arms ZI and 22 of the bender are rigidly tied together and operate in unison.

For swinging the bender two rodsV 33 are employed which overlie surfaces 34 formed at the lower portions of the arms 2| and 22. Cap screws 35- extend through said rods and are screwed into said portions of said arms. The rods 33 have secured to the outer ends thereof handles 36 by means of which the said bender may be swung about the axis of the stub shaft l 3.

The clamping device I8 comprises a jaw structure 31 which consists of a number of fingers 38a, 381), 38e, 38d, etc., which are carried by a supporting bar 39 and which serve as one of the clamp members of the clamping device. The under surfaces of these fingers have been designated by the reference numeral II3. The bed I'B forms the other of said clamp members. The bar 39 is angular in form having a horizontal flange 40 and a vertical flange 4l. The fingers 38a, 38D, 38e, 38d, etc., fit into the bight 42 formed between these flanges and are attached to said supporting bar by means of cap screws 43. The cap screws 43 extend through slots 44 formed in the flange 45 of bar 3S and are screwed into said fingers. The bight 42 and the ends of `the fingers are ground square so that the fingers are held from turning and extend squarely outwardly from the bar 39. The slots 44 are arranged 1n alignment and permit of shifting the fingers 38a, 38h, 38o, 38d, etc., longitudinally along the support and of arranging the same in any desired formation. At the ends of the bar 3S are provided arms 45 which project forwardly therefrom. These arms are disposed in the bght 42 of bar 39 the same as the fingers 38a, 38h, 38e, 38d, etc. and are attached thereto by means of cap screws 46. These cap screws are located at the forward portion of the bar 39.

For resisting rearward movement of the bar 39 posts 41 are employed which are secured to the end of the bed IS by means of cap screws 48. These screws extend through said posts and are screwed into the bed. Dowel pins, not illustrated in the drawings, also extend through said posts and into the bed and prevent said posts from turning. These posts are threaded to receive adjusting screws 49 which project forwardly through said posts and are adapted to engage the ange 4I of the supporting bar 39. The posts 4l are formed with slits 50 shown in Fig. 1 and which extend down to the screws 49. Cap screws I extend through the upper portions of said posts and clamp the same together to hold the screws 49 from rotation. By means of this construction the forward edges of the ngers 38a, 3817, 33e, 38d, etc. may be adjusted to any position with reference to the forward edge of the bed I5. The elevation of the rearward portion of the clamping member I8 is determined by means of two adjusting screws 52. These screws pass through the flange 49 of supporting bar 3S and are screwed into the arms 45. These screws DESS completely through said arms and engage the upper surface of the bed l5. Lock nuts 53 mounted on these screws and engaging the upper surface of `the ange 4B hold the screws in adjusted position and also assist in clamping the arms to the bar 39.

For operating the jaw structure 3l two bolts 54 are employed. These bolts extend through holes 55 in the arms 45 and have attached to the ends of the same a nut 56 and a lock nut 5l. The bolts 54 further extend through two `clamp levers 58 which are disposed above the base II. The heads 69 of these bolts engage the under side of said clamp levers. The clamp levers 58 are held in position on the base 69 by means of dowel pins 6I which extend loosely through said levers and are driven into the base I l. Washers 67 11- circle said dowel pins and form a support for the rearward portions of said levers. By means of this construction the clamping levers 58 are supported for a Slight amount of swinging movement.

The jaw structure 3'! is urged upwardly by means of compression coil springs 52 which encircle the bolts 54 and which are received in cavities 63 formed in the bed E6. The springs 62 engage the bed I6 from above and the arms 45 from below and urge the jaw structure 3l upwardly so that the sheet metal to be bent and which is disposed between the fingers 38a, 38h, 38e, 38d, etc., and bed it can be readily inserted in between said ngers and bed.

The clamping device I8 further includes a rock shaft 64. This rock shaft extends through the two blocks I5 and is journaled in bearings 69 formed therein. Said rock shaft also extends through holes formed in the standards I2 and projects outwardly beyond the ends of the same. The rock shaft 64 is located intermediate the clamping levers 58 and the bed I6.

For operating the levers 58 said levers are each provided with a V-shaped notch 5S. In a similar manner the shaft 54 is formed with two V-shaped notches 69 which are eccentric with reference to the axis of said shaft and which are dispsed above the notches 68. Between the shaft 64 and the levers 58 are disposed two thrust members lll which have fulcrums 'Il and i2 seated in the notches 68 and 69. When the shaft 64 is in the position shown in Fig. 4 the crotch of the notch B9 is to the left of the lines joining the axis of the shaft 64 and the crotch of the notch 68. Movement of the shaft 64 in a counter clockwise direction as viewed in this figure causes the crotch of the notch 69 to move to a position substantially in said line or to a slight amount to the right of said line. This urges the levers 58 downwardly and the bolts 54 which form links between said levers and the arms 45, draw the jaw structure 3'! downwardly to clamp the work between the fingers 38a, 38h, 38e, 38d, etc.J and the bed I5. For rocking the shaft 54 a handle 'I2 is employed which is attached to either end of said shaft and which has secured to the end of the same a knob 73 by means of which said handle may be manipulated.

In order to determine the angle at which the work is to be bent stops 'I4 and 'l5 are employed which are rotatably mounted on the rock Shaft B4 between the levers 58 and the arms 2 I. Both of these stops being identical in construction only the stop 14 will be described in detail. vThis stop comprises an upwardly extending arm 11 which has an engaging surface 18. The surface 18 may be engaged by means of a pin 19 insertable into any number of drilled holes 80 arranged in circumferential formation on the arm 2|. Coarse adjustment of angularity of the bend may be procured by inserting the pin 19 in the plOpS hole 80. Fine adjustment may be procured by means of an adjusting screw 8| which is screwed into an arm 82 formed on the stop 14. The screw 8| engages the base and forms an abutment limiting swinging of the stop on the shaft 64 and terminating the rearward movement of the stop. Screw 8| is held in adjusted position by means of a lock nut 83. The stop 14 is held from sliding movement on the shaft 64 by means of the levers 45 on one side and the arms 2| on the other side.

The invention proper consists of a gage indicated in its entirety by the reference numeral 85. This gage is constructed from sheet metal or a resilient material such as spring steel, bronze or brass and is formed with a series of spaced slots 86 extending transversely of the same. These slots are narrow at the outer ends and widen toward their inner ends to form in the sheet from which the gage is constructed an elongated body portion 81 with fingers 88 projecting outwardly therefrom. Due to the shape of the slots B6 said fingers have tips 89 which have ends 90 of maximum width. Inwardly of said ends said fingers have shanks 9| which are of reduced width. Each of the fingers is normally given a twist so that the ends 90 extend angularly with respect to the body 81 as best shown in Fig. 2. The gage 05 is arranged to overlie the bed I6 and the ends 90 of the fingers 88 project forwardly of the brake. These fingers are disposed between the bed I6 and the fingers 38a, etc. When the jaw structure 31 is operated to clamp the work in position said jaw structure attens out the fingers. In this manner the space 92 between the fingers 38a, 38D, 38e, 38d, etc., and of the bed I5 is always maintained bridged. The work to be Ibent may be inserted into this space forwardly of the gage 85 and the ends 90 of said ngers engage the work and limit movement of the same into the brake.

The gage 85 is supported in the following manner: For the purpose a carriage ||2 is employed. This `carriage includes a supporting bar 93 which lies along the underside of the body portion 81 of the gage 85, as best shown in Fig.

3. The gage 85 is attached to this bar by means Y.

of screws 94 which extend through the body 81 of said gage and are screwed into said bar. Depending from the bar 93 are two posts 95 which are slidably mounted on two rods 96. These rods are attached to a web 91 formed on the base and project rearwardly therefrom. Secured to the ends of the rods 96 are two hangers 98. These hangers have holes drilled in the same which form bearings for rotatably supporting a shaft 99. Shaft 99 has secured to the center of the same a lever by means of which said shaft may be rotated. This lever has a bore |0| extending through the end of the same and through which the shaft 99 extends. A slot |02 formed in the end of said lever divides said lever into two juxtaposed parts |03 and |04. A cap screw extends freely through the part |04 and is screwed into the part |03. This cap screw draws the parts together and clamps said lever to the shaft. At the ends of the shaft 99 6 are provided two arms |06. These arms are attached to the said shaft by means similar to that used in conjunction with the lever |00. The description of this construction will hence not be repeated. The levers |06 have pivoted to them by means of pintles |01 two links |08 which are similarly pivoted to the posts 95 by means of other pintles |09. By means of this construction the carriage ||2 comprising the posts 95, the cross bar 93 and the gage 85 may be reciprocated in a forward and backward direction to position the ends 90 of the fingers 88 in proper relation to the bending edges of the fingers 38a, 38h, 38o, 38d, etc. The posts 95 may be locked in position on the rods 96 by a construction similar to that used for securing the lever |00 to the shaft |0|. For this purpose a screw H0 is employed. In a similar manner the hangers 98 may be secured in adjusted position on the rods 96. In like manner a screw is employed for the purpose.

The use of the invention is obvious. The twist given to the fingers 88 of gage 85 is such that the lateral edges of said fingers at the tips 89 engage the upper surface I9 of the bed 6 as well as the under surfaces I3 of the fingers 38a, 38h, 38e, 38d, etc. when the clamping device is fully open. When the brake is to be used the ends 90 of said fingers are adjusted by shifting the gage forwardly or rearwardly as the case may be by manipulation of handle |00 to bring the same at the proper location with reference to the bending edge of the brake. The carriage H2 is then locked in position by means of the screw H8. The work is then inserted into the space 92 until the inner edge thereof engages the ends of the fingers 88. Since the tips 89 extend completely across said space it becomes impossible to slide the work past the gage, The lever 12 is then manipulated to clamp the work between the jaw structure 31 and the bed I6. As the jaw structure 31 is advanced toward said bed the tips 89 are twisted back into the plane of the body portion 81 and the space 92 maintained bridged at all times to position the work. When securely clamped the work is bent in the customary manner.

The advantages of the invention are manin fest. The gage is simple to operate and positive and fool proof in action. The gage may be used with relatively thin stock and needs be only slightly thinner than the thickness of the work being bent. With the invention the work can be inserted into the space between the jaw structure and base at any locality therein without slipping past the gage and regardless of the degree of opening of the clamping device. The device can be constructed at a nominal expense and can be made of a length to fit any size brake. The work engaging edges of the stop extend throughout the entire length of the brake so the work can be inserted into the brake at any position along the bed. The adjusting device for the gage is easily manipulated and serves positively to hold the gage in proper position. By means of the construction employed the work engaging edges of the brake are caused to move in parallelism with the bending edge of the brake.

Changes in the specific form of the invention, as herein described, may be made within the scope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having described the invention, what is 7 claimed as new and desired to be protected by Letters Patent is:

1. A gage for disposition between the clamp members of a brake, said gage being constructed from a sheet of resilient sheet material having a forward edge, said sheet being formed with a plurality of spaced slots extending inwardly from said edge of the sheet and transversely thereof to provide a body portion with a plurality of spaced fingers extending forwardly therefrom, and transverse to said edge, said fingers having end edges formed from said edge of the sheet and lateral edges formed by saidslots, the ends of said fingers being normally disposed in inclined relation with respect to the plane of the body portion and being yieldably movable into the. plane of the body portion, the lateral edges ofv said fingers formed by said slots being each adapted to. engage one of the clamping surfaces ofv saidv clamp members independently of the body portion and to bridge the space therebetween and the end edges of said fingers forming work engaging edges adapted to engage the work and position the same between the clamp members.

2. A gage for disposition between the clamp members of a brake, said gage being constructed from a sheet of resilient sheet material having a forward edge, said sheet being formed with a plurality of spaced slots extending inwardly from said edge of the sheet and transversely thereof to provide a body portion with a plurality of spaced fingers extending forwardly therefrom, and transverse to said edge, said fingers having end edges. formed from said edge of the sheet and lateral edges formed by said slots, said fingers having twists therein causing the ends of said ngers normally to be disposed in inclined relation with respect to the plane of the body portion the lateral edges of said fingers formed by said slots beingv eachV adapted to engage one of the clamping surfaces of said clamp members independently of the body portion and to bridge the space therebetween and the end edges of said fingers forming work engaging edges adapted to engage the work and position the same between the clamp members.

3. A gage for disposition between the clamp members of a brake, said gage being constructed from a sheet of resilient sheet material having a forward edge, said sheet being formed with a plurality of spaced slots extending inwardly from said edge ofvr the sheet and transversely thereof to provide a body portion with a plurality of spaced fingers extending forwardly therefrom, and transverse to said edge, said ngers having end edges, formed from said edge of the sheet and lateral edges formed by said slots, said fingers being of a length in a direction transverse to` said end edges greater than the length of said end-edgea the ends of said fingers being normally fio disposed. in inclined' relation with respect to the plane of` the body portion and being yieldably movable into the plane of the body portion, the lateral edges of said fingers formed by said slots being each adapted to engage one of the clamping surfaces of said clamp members independently of the body portion and to. bridge the space therebetween and the end edges of said fingers forming work engaging edges adapted to engage the workV and position the same between the clamp members.

4. A gage for disposition between the clamp members of a brake, said gage being constructed from a sheet of resilient sheet material having a forward edge, said sheet being formed with a plurality of spaced slots extending inwardly from said edge of the sheet. and transversely thereof to provide a body portion with a plurality of spaced iingers extending forwardly therefrom, and transverse to said edge, said fingers having end edges formed from said edge of the sheet and lateral edges formed by said slots, said fingers having portions reduced in width inwardly of their outer. ends and being formed at such por,- tions with twists therein causing the endsv of said fingers normally to be disposed in inclined relation with respect to the plane of the body portion, the ends, of said fingers being normally disposed in inclined relation with respect to the plane of the body portion and being yieldably movable into the plane of the body portion, the lateral edges of said fingers formed by said slots being each adapted to engage one of the clamping surfaces 0f Said clamp members independently of the body portion and to bridge the space therebetween and the end edges of said fingers forming work engaging edges adapted to engage the work and position the same between the clamp members.

ROGER P. LINDER.

References Cited in the file 4of this patent' UNITED STATES PATENTS Numberl Name Date 222,574 Constant Dec. 16, 1879 267,913 McDonald Nov. 21, 1882 367,214 Koenig July 26, 1887 538,520 Keehn Apr. 20, 1895 929,818 Benedek Aug. 3, 19,09 951,639 lirazierY Mar. 8, 1910 954,396 Klindworth Apr. 5, 1910 2,254,659- Kowalski Sept. 2,1941 2,474,683 Linder June 28, 1949 2,502,056 Million Mar, 28, 1950 2,510,768 Williamson June 6, 1950 2,525,625 Stott Oct. 10, 1950 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 44,090 Germany Aug. 1, 1888 

